The House of Beauvau was the name of a historic French noble family originating in

Anjou Anjou may refer to: Geography and titles France *County of Anjou, a historical county in France and predecessor of the Duchy of Anjou **Count of Anjou, title of nobility *Duchy of Anjou, a historical duchy and later a province of France ** Du ...

, whose members held significant political and military positions in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

and the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...

History

The Beauvau du Rivau branch was rooted in Brittany and produced two bishops of Nantes, whilst the Craon (

Prince of Craon The Prince , princely title of Prince of Craon was a title used by the Beauvau family using their status as Prince of the Holy Roman Empire which was gained in 1722 which was later fully recognised by Louis XV of France in 1755 and was inherited ...

) branch was established in

Lorraine Lorraine, also , ; ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; ; ; is a cultural and historical region in Eastern France, now located in the administrative region of Grand Est. Its name stems from the medieval kingdom of ...

later enjoying great intimacy with the then reigning ducal family. As with the comtes d'Anjou, the Beauvaus served the kings of France right up to the 18th century. In 1454, the family allied itself to the royal house of France by the marriage of Isabeau de Beauvau with Jean de Bourbon, Count of Vendôme. Of knightly extraction, has proofs of its nobility going back as far as 1265. The title of marquis of Beauvau was granted to the head of the family by

Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

in 1664. The family also had rights to the prestigious title of "cousin du Roi", reserved for a few families with an alliance with the royal house. Marc de Beauvau,

(1679–1754) was entitled

prince of the Holy Roman Empire Prince of the Holy Roman Empire (, , cf. ''Fürst'') was a title attributed to a hereditary ruler, nobleman or prelate recognised by the Holy Roman Emperor. Definition Originally, possessors of the princely title bore it as immediate vassal ...

in 1722, and it was under this title that the family was admitted to the "honneurs de la Cour" in 1775. The Beauvau arms were ''d'argent à 4 lionceaux de gueules armés, lampassés et couronnés d'or''. {{France-hist-stub